Apparatus for containing and transferring molten metal



(No Model.)

H. SGHULZE-BERGE.

APPARATUS FOR CONTAINING AND TRANSFERRING MOLTEN METAL.

No. 329,491. Patented Nov. 3, 1885.

- ATTORNEY .new and useful Improvement in Apparatus UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

IIERMANN SCHULZE-BFRGE, OF ROCHESTER, PENNSYLVANIA APPARATUS FORCONTAINING AND TRANSFERRING NOLTEN METAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 329,491, dated November3, 1885.

Application filed nmh n, 1884.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HEBMANN SCHULZE- BERGE, of Rochester, in the countyof Beaver and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a for Containing andTransferring Molten Metal and I do hereby declare the following to be alull, clear, and exact description thereof.

Heretofore ladies used for conveying molten steel from Bessemerconverters and openhearth furnaces to discharge it into the molds havebeen provided with stoppers working from the inside to regulate the flowof metal out of the ladle and eventually to stop it. These stoppersconsist of an iron rod provided with a plug or stopper proper at itslower end, and with a tubular covering of refractory material to protectit from the action of the molten steel through which it passes. Thestopper is composed of refractory material, and is set in a suitablecavity or recess in the bottom of the ladle. The seat is made in therefractory lining of the ladle and surrounds the discharge-opening. Inmaking use of this stopper, the stopper is first put in place with theupper end of the rod projecting above the mouth of the vessel andcurving over so as to be secured to the edge of the same. The steel isthen run into the ladle from the converter or furnace, and when theladle is brought to position over the molds the stopper is raised, so asto permit the discharge of the proper quantity of molten steel. A ladlecontains a. sutficient quantity of steel to fill several molds, so thatthe flow of steel has to stop while the ladle is being transferred frommold to mold. As the molten metal passes out of the ladle between thestopper and its seat, it cuts the latter so that the stopper cannotclose the discharge-orifice tightly. The result is at the best that suchstoppers and seats will stand but about three charges before theyrequire to be renewed. As the stopper cannot be raised very high fromits seat in securing its proper manipulation, metal leaving the ladle isprevented from forming a solid stream and is caused to spatter in everydirection. This causes the fluid metal to absorb oxygen or to form inparts of the ingotmold not yet reached by the rising metal thereinparticles of steel producing defective places in the ingots and SerialNo. I25,l39. (N0 mull-l.)

in the articles which are rolled out therefrom. In addition to this aconsiderable quantity of metal is lost in shifting the ladle from onemold to another, because, even when the stop per or seat is not worn, itcannot be closed tight instantaneously. Moreover, the rod to which thestopper is attached, although pro tected by a covering of refractorymaterial, sometimes gets too hot and bends, so that the stopper does notcome to its seat.

My invention is designed to overcome the difliculties above recited andfacilitate the transfer and treatment of molten metal in the variousmetallurgical processes; and, generally stated, it consists in employinga tapering revolnble stopper arranged in a corresponding seat at themelting angle of the sides and bottom of the vessel, and in theemployment therewith of a securing-plate, axle for rotating the stopper,axle-bracket, and yielding pressure devices, skeleton for securing alubricating substance to the stopper, and other details, all as willhereinafter more fully appear, whereby the use of a revolnble stopperwith metallurgic vessels is rendered practical and possible.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willnow describe it by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which-Figure 1 is a vertical section of a -portion-' The discharge-opening bis made at the corner or shoulder between the side and bottom, insteadof through the bottom, as heretofore. This portion of the vessel isfitted with a conical or other suitably-shaped seat, 0, of suitablerefractory material, designed for the reception' of a conical-shapedstopper, d, which is provided with a bore or hole, d, extendingdiagonally through it. The stopper d is made of refractory material, andis secured to a metal plate, e,'which plate is provided with a socket ora screw or square recess, a, for the reception of the end of a revolubleshaft or axle, f. The axle f is supported by a bracket, f, 'secured tothe metallic casing a of the ladle. The shaft f-extends through twolugs, f", of the bracket, and at the portion which lies between the lugsis screw-threaded and supplied with an adjusting-nut, between the end ofwhich and the outer lugf is a spring, g. This spring is designed to holdthe stopper (1 tightly to its seat, and for that purpose is made verystrong, its pressure being regulated by the tension-nut g. The axle fisprovided with a lever, f, by which the stopper is turned to open andclose it. When it is desired to discharge the molten metal from theladle, the lever is turned so as to bring the stopper to the positionshown in Fig. 1, and when it is desired to close the dischargeopening ofthe ladle the lever is turned so as to bring the bore d of the stopperout of connection with the discharge-orifice b of the ladle. Thus itwill be seen thatthe molten metal does not enter between the stopper andits seat, and consequently neither of these parts is exposed to wear bythe metal. The discharge opening or bore of the stopper stands at anangle to the axle f, so that the turning of the axle will cause thedischarge-opening of the stopper to register with that of the ladle. Ifit is desired, a lubricating medium consisting of a felt'like substance,such as asbestus, may be placed between the stopper and its seat andgathered upon a skeleton, h, of very fine wire-gauze, and permeated withlubricating mineral powders-such as graphite and soapstone. In Fig. 6 Ishow a view of such a skeleton. The stopper is attached to its metallicaxle by resting in a pyramidal or cornered seat in the plate 6, theprolonged tube d extending through the plate, as shown in Fig. 1. Itmay, however, be connected to theaxle in any other convenient way. Theaxle is secured inits bearings by removable boxes f, and can be takenoff by removing the boxes. The function of the spring g may be obtainedby the use of a weighted levtr. i, as shown in Fig. 7, said lever beingpivoted to the bracket f, and bearing against the adj ustable nut g. Theshape of the stopper may be conical, asshown, or hemispherical,cylindriea], or elliptical in longitudinal section, or it may be acircular disk, and the bore or hole may terminate inside of the vesselat any place in the surface of suchdisk which does not lie in the directprolongation of the axis of the axle f. The axle f is insuch relation tothe opening in the vessel which is to be closed that such opening is notsituated in the axial line of the stopper. The stopper may be located inthe sides of the vessel or in the bottom, .or in that portion of thelining connecting the side walls and the bottom, as shown. It can beused in connection with ladies or with ovens, hearths, or furnaces totap molten metal therefrom, and if properly arranged it can also be usedfor the purpose of introducing through its bore gaseous or'fluidsubstances into such ladle, furnace, or hearth.

The advantages derived from the invention hereinbefore set forth are asfollows: The taporifice may be fully opened to obtain a free dischargeof the molten metal,and perfectly closed to arrest the discharge;secondly, the metal is discharged in a solid column, which reducesmaterially its cutting effect on the lining or the tap, and the loss byoxidiz'atiou of the metal, which two points of advantage insure bettercastings; and, thirdly, the wear or cutting action of the metal isconfined to the revoluble plug-which can be readily replaced, and whichwear does not materially affect the efficiency of the plug.

I am aware that refractory material is commonly and necessarily employedfor linings and plugs of furnaces, ladles, and like metallurgic vessels;and I am also awaretliat rcroluble stoppers or faucets having throughports at an angle to the axis of rotation are old as applied tobeer-barrels, 850.. and do not herein claim such devices, broadly, and Iwish to be distinctly understood as limiting myinvention to animprovementin the art of metallurgy. p p

What lclaim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A metallnrgic vessel having atapered stopper-seat, a port situated atthe meeting angle of the side and bottom thereof, a tapering revolublestopper having an eccentric port therethrough, and a metallic securing:plate for confining the revoluble stopper, substantially as and for thepurposes specified.

2. The combination, with a metallurgic vessel having aport anda taperedstopperseat recessed therein, of a tapering revoluble stopper having aneccentric discharge-port theret-hrough, a stopper-axle, a bracketwherein the stopper-axle is journaled, and a counterweight which acts onthe stopper, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

3. The combinatiomwith a metallurgic vessel having a port and a recessedseat adapted to receive a revoluble stopper, of a revoluble stopperarranged in said seat, an axle for.

substantially as and for the purposes specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 17th day ofFebruary, A. D. 1884.

HERMANN SCHULZE-BERGE.

Vvit-nessesr W. B. CORWIN, T. B. KERR.

